French ship Ville de Paris (1764)

Last updated
Vaisseau le Ville de Paris en 1764 a Rochefort.jpg
Ville de Paris in Rochefort, 1764
History
Flag of the Kingdom of France (1814-1830).svg France
NameImpétueux
Orderedas Impétueux
Builder Rochefort harbour
Laid down1757
Launched19 January 1764
Commissioned1764
RenamedVille de Paris in 1762
FateSank during 1782 Central Atlantic hurricane in September 1782
General characteristics
Class and type First-rate ship of the line
Length54 m (177 ft)
Beam14.6 m (48 ft)
Draught6.7 m (22 ft)
PropulsionSail
Armament
ArmourTimber

Ville de Paris was a large three-decker French ship of the line that became famous as the flagship of De Grasse during the American Revolutionary War.

Contents

Career

Originally laid down in 1757 as the 90-gun Impétueux, she was funded by the City of Paris and renamed Ville de Paris in 1762 as a result of the don des vaisseaux, Duc de Choiseul’s campaign to raise funds for the navy from the cities and provinces of France.

She was completed in 1764 as a 90-gun first rate, just too late to serve in the Seven Years' War. She was one of the first three-deckers to be completed for the French navy since the 1720s.

In 1778, on the French entry into the American Revolutionary War she was commissioned at Brest, joining the fleet as the flagship of Guichen. In July she fought in the indecisive Battle of Ushant (1778).

At some point during the next two years, she had an additional 14 small guns mounted on her previously unarmed quarterdeck, making her a 104-gun ship.

In 1779, she was the flagship of a division under Duchaffault, part of the Armada of 1779. [1]

In March 1781 she sailed for the West Indies as flagship of a fleet of 20 ships of the line under De Grasse. She then fought at the Battle of Fort Royal and the Battle of the Chesapeake, under Captain Cresp de Saint-Césaire. [2] [3]

In 1782, she fought in the Battle of St. Kitts as De Grasse's flagship. [4]

At the Battle of the Saintes on 12 April 1782, the British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney defeated the French fleet under the Comte de Grasse, and captured Ville de Paris. No longer capable of sailing, with no masts and no rudder, the stricken ship was towed by HMS Namur after the battle, being taken to Port Royal, Jamaica for repair. [5]

The ship sank in September 1782 with other ships including HMS Glorieux when the 1782 Central Atlantic hurricane hit the fleet off Newfoundland Admiral Graves was leading back to England. Ville de Paris sank with the loss of all 500 hands but one, thereafter known as "Wilson of the Ville de Paris". [6]

A ship of the line of the Royal Navy was named after her: HMS Ville de Paris, launched in 1795.

Legacy

Two of her guns were retained in Jamaica, they now flank the Rodney memorial in Spanish Town, Jamaica. [7]

Citations

  1. Taillemite (2002), p. 149.
  2. Musée de la Marine (2019), p. 87.
  3. Lacour-Gayet (1910), p. 648.
  4. Hubbard, Vincent (2002). A History of St. Kitts . Macmillan Caribbean. p.  96. ISBN   9780333747605.
  5. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.160
  6. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.164
  7. Aspinall, Algernon E. (1907). The pocket guide to the West Indies, British Guiana, British Honduras, the Bermudas, the Spanish Main, and the Panama canal (New and revised 1914 ed.). Rand, McNally & Company. pp. 188–189. Retrieved 23 July 2018.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Saintes</span> Naval Battle of American Revolutionary War (1782)

The Battle of the Saintes, also known as the Battle of Dominica, was an important naval battle in the Caribbean between the British and the French that took place 9–12 April 1782. The British victory was considered their greatest over the French during the American Revolutionary War.

Sceptre was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. Built under the Ancien Régime, she took part in the naval operations in the American Revolutionary War. At the Revolution, she took part in the main actions of the French Revolutionary Wars, notably the so-called Glorious First of June and in Bruix' expedition of 1799. Showing her age by the rise of the First French Empire, she was hulked and eventually broken up.

French ship <i>Neptune</i> (1778) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Neptune was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.

The Zélé was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Royal Navy. She was funded by a don des vaisseaux donation from the Régisseur général des finances.

French ship <i>César</i> (1768) Ship of the line of the French Navy

César was a 74-gun ship of the French Navy. Ordered in the spring of 1767 from the Toulon shipyard, she was launched on 3 August 1768. César saw service in the American War of Independence, during which she was destroyed in the Battle of the Saintes.

French ship <i>Hector</i> (1755) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Hector was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. Hector was launched in 1755 and fought in the American Revolutionary War during which she captured two ships of the British Royal Navy on 14 August 1778. In 1782, the ship was captured by the Royal Navy at the Battle of the Saintes in 1782. Taken into service by the Royal Navy, the vessel was renamed HMS Hector. On 5 September 1782. HMS Hector fought two French frigates. Severely damaged during the battle, and by a hurricane that followed later in September, Hector sank on 4 October 1782.

French ship <i>Palmier</i> (1752) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Palmier was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">François Hector d'Albert de Rions</span> French Navy officer of the War of American Independence

François Hector d’Albert, comte de Rioms or Rions was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence, earning a membership in the Society of Cincinnati.

Sagittaire was a 50-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.

Destin was a 74-gun ship of the French Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoine Cresp de Saint-Césaire</span> French Navy officer of the War of American Independence

Antoine Cresp de Saint-Césaire was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence.

Armand Le Gardeur de Tilly was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph-Bernard de Chabert-Cogolin</span> French Navy officer of the War of American Independence

Joseph-Bernard de Chabert-Cogolin was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierre René Marie de Vaugiraud de Rosnay</span> French Navy officer of the War of American Independence

Pierre René Marie de Vaugiraud de Rosnay was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence, earning membership in the Society of the Cincinnati. He was later a virulent Royalist and counter-Revolutionary.

François-Aymar de Monteil was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence, earning membership in the Society of the Cincinnati. He was also a member and director of the Académie de Marine.

Actionnaire was a 64-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. Originally built for the French East India Company, she was purchased by the Navy and saw service during the War of American Independence.

Zodiaque was a 74-gun Diadème-class ship of the line of the French Navy.

Hippolyte-Augustin de Sade de Vaudronne was a French Navy officer. He served during the War of American Independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armand-Claude Poute de Nieuil</span>

Armand-Claude Poute de Nieuil was a French Navy officer. He served during the War of American Independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoine Hilarion de Beausset</span> French Navy officer

Antoine Hilarion de Beausset was a French Navy officer. He notably served during the War of American Independence.

References